Chelate electronic properties control the redox behaviour and superoxide reactivity of seven-coordinate manganese(II) complexes.

We have synthesized and characterized two Mn(II) seven-coordinate complexes with N5 pentadentate ligands, which contain hydrazone and hydrazide groups respectively. We have shown that insertion of hydrazido (amido) groups into the ligand sphere increases the negative charge of the chelate, without changing a donor atom set and coordination geometry, and radically modulate a redox activity of seven-coordinate manganese complexes, which is important for the function of manganese as a superoxide dismutase catalytic center.